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Previous Volume 329:1936-1939 December 23, 1993 Number 26 Next

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ABSTRACT

Background Sexual harassment within the doctor-patient relationship is typically discussed in terms of male doctors harassing female patients. We investigated the sexual harassment of female doctors by patients.

Methods Surveys were mailed to a random sample of 599 of the 1064 licensed female family physicians in Ontario, Canada. Respondents were asked about their experiences of sexual harassment by either male or female patients and about the nature and frequency of harassing behavior. Suggestions for prevention were requested.

Results Seventy percent (422) of the questionnaires were completed and returned. More than 75 percent of the respondents reported some sexual harassment by a patient at some time during their careers. Physicians had been harassed most often in their own offices and by their own patients. However, in settings such as emergency rooms and clinics, unknown patients presented a proportionately higher risk. The physicians' perceptions of the seriousness of the problem varied with the frequency and severity of the incidents.

Conclusions Sexual harassment of female doctors appears to occur frequently, and it is therefore an important topic to address in medical school and professional development.

Source Information

From the Department of Family Medicine, Queen's University, Kingston, Ont. (S.P.P.), and the Department of Applied Psychology, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, Toronto (M.S.S.) -- both in Canada.

Address reprint requests to Dr. Phillips at the Department of Family Medicine, Queen's University, 220 Bagot St., Kingston, ON K7L 5E9, Canada.

Full Text of this Article

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Sexual Harassment
Shurin S. B., Fischer H., Neiburger E.J., Van Sande J., Phillips S.
Extract | Full Text  
N Engl J Med 1994; 330:1388-1389, May 12, 1994. Correspondence

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